Direct Services

In New York City, 1.4 million people — the majority of whom are women, children, elderly, the working poor and people with disabilities — rely on soup kitchens and food pantries. The Food Bank's direct services enable us to connect directly with individuals in need to address the symptoms and causes of food poverty.

As the premiere food stamp outreach and enrollment organization throughout the five boroughs, our Food Stamp Direct Service & Outreach program works to educate and connect directly with low-income New Yorkers to ensure access to this key piece of the hunger safety net.

To ensure that eligible New Yorkers have access to this key piece of the hunger safety net, the Food Bank's Food Stamp Training & Advocacy program helps hundreds of community-based organizations citywide to act as food stamp resource and application centers for their communities.

One of the largest programs of its type in the country, the Food Bank's Free Income Tax Services program has completed more than 38,000 tax returns for low- to moderate-income New Yorkers annually — bringing more than $65 million in tax refunds and Earned Income Tax Credits (EITC) back into the city.